Shelf



Patented June 15, 1943 SHELF Homer E. ltoscbrook, Greenville, Mich, and

car E. Norberg, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignors to Gibson Electric Refrigerator Corporation,

Greenville, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application October 2, 1941, Serial No. 413,244

4 Claims. (Cl. 211153) This invention relates to wire shelves and more particularly to the constructionand ornamentation of the front edge thereof.

{Shelves employed in householdrefrigerators, ovens and the like, commonly are constructed or cylindrical bars or wires. Usually shelves of this type comprise a rectangular frame and a plurality of parallel cross bars secured totwo opposite sides of the frame between the planes of the I top and bottom surfaces thereof, or laid upon such opposite sides of the frame and in some manner secured to the frame. The former practice necessitates cutting the cross bars to length very accurately and at, the same time presents the problem of holding the cross bars in place while securing them to the frame. The other procedure renders it difiicult to produce a shelf of pleasing-appearance, because the ends of the cross bars at the front of the shelf are exposed to view. Furthermore, the projecting ends are not always accurately aligned with each other.

Accordingly, the principal object of this invention is to provide a shelf of the character indicated which will have a pleasing appearance but which can be quickly, easily and economically fabricated.

This object and other ancillary thereto will more fully appear in th following specification when read in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein- Figure 1 is a plan view of a shelf embodying the invention;

Figure 2 is a front elevational view of the shelf shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a right hand end elevational view of the shelf; and

Figure 4 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view on an enlarged scale, taken on substantially the line 4-4 of Figure 2.

Referring now more in detail to the drawing, the invention is shown as embodiedin a shelf primarily adapted for use within the storage compartment of a refrigerator cabinet.

The shelf comprises a main frame In composed of a cylindrical rod bent into the rectangular configuration shown in Figure 1. Preferably the adjoining ends of the rod are butt welded together.

A plurality of spaced apart parallel cross bars ll, preferably of lighter gauge than the frame ID, are secured to the front and rear edges of the frame Ill. The cross bars ll rest upon the frame and are welded thereto as indicated at l2, Figure 4. The ends of the cross bars preferably are beveled as indicated at 13.

An upstanding guard M is provided at the rear edge of the shelf to prevent articles placed upon the shelf from being accidentally dislodged therefrom. The guard is formed from a cylindrical bar bent to the shape shown in Figure 2, and the ends of the guard are secured to the rear part of the frame 10 in any suitable way, such as-by Welding. Attached to the guard 14 near its ends are stops I5 which cooperate with the usual shelf guides to prevent accidental removal of the shelf from the guides. Near the front of the shelf and projecting downwardly therefrom are two more stops LIB. These stops are employed to limit the movement of the shelf in a rearward direction.

A trim member I! is provided at the frontside only of the frame. The trim member I! is an elongated metal strip suitably ornamented on its outer side, as by grooves l8. Its length corresponds substantially to the width of the shelf. The trim member is secured to the frame Ill by welding to the front side of the frame. trim member I1 is upwardly and inwardly inclined to engage the adjacent beveled ends of the cross bars 13. It is inclined so as to effectively conceal the adjacent ends of the cross bars I3 and the welded joints [2 from View. Since the shelf is ordinarily located below the eye level, the welded joints 12 could be seen, particularly when the shelf is pulled out, if the trim member was not inclined.

The invention lends itself to a method of assembly wherein the trim member acts as part of the means for positioning the cross bars 13. In that method the trim member H is welded to the main frame 10 prior to the assembly of the cross bars I l thereon. After the trim memher i! is secured to the frame the cross members H can be laid upon the frame and their beveled front ends brought into contact with the rear face of the trim member. In this way the front ends of the cross bars are exactly aligned with each other and accurately positioned relative to the frame. Any variation in length of the cross bars then occurs only at the rear side of the frame, and inasmuch as the variation will in all cases be slight, it is unnecessary to remove any excess by grinding or machining. In addition to accurately positioning the cross bars ll upon the frame, the trim member ll cooperates with the frame ll! to hold the cross bars in position while they are being welded to the frame. That eliminates the necessity of providing jigs for holding the parts in their proper relationship while they are being secured together.

The employment of the trim member thus The eliminates the difficult and expensive butt welding of the ends of the cross bars to the inside of the frame between the planes of the upper and lower surfaces thereof which has been the practice heretofore. It also eliminates the necessity of accurately cutting the cross bars to length. Furthermore, the trim member adds an ornamental touch to the front end of the frame and being inclined, it effectively conceals the front ends of the cross bars and their welded joints, thereby giving to the entire assembly a highly pleasing appearance.

The scope of the invention is indicated in th appended claims.

We claim:

1. A wire shelf comprising a main frame, one side of said main frame being formed by a cylindrical frame member, a plurality of spaced apart parallel cross bars, opposite ends of said cross bars being secured on top of said cylindrical member and to the opposite side of the frame, the end surfaces of said bars adjacent said cylindrical frame member being upwardly and inwardly inclined in a plane tangent to the surface thereof at the outer side of the frame, and a trim -member of a length substantially equal to that of the cylindrical frame member secured thereto and inclining upwardly and inwardly to conceal the adjacent ends of said cross bars.

2. A wire shelf comprising a main frame, a plurality of spaced apart parallel cross bars, opposite ends of said cross bars being secured on top of opposite sides of said main frame, the end surfaces of said bars at one side of said frame being upwardly and inwardly inclined, and an upwardly and inwardly inclined trim member overlying and concealing said last mentioned ends of the cross bars and secured to the adjacent side of said frame at the outer side thereof, said trim member extending the entire length of the last mentioned side of the frame.

3. A wire shelf comprising a main frame, one side of said main frame being formed by a cylindrical frame member, a plurality of spaced apart parallel cross bars, opposite ends of said cross bars being secured on top of said cylindrical frame member and to the opposite side of said frame, the end surfaces of said bars adjacent said cylindrical frame member being in a plane tangent to the surface thereof at the outer side of the frame, and a trim member of a length substantially equal to that of the cylindrical frame member secured thereto, said trim member having a portion extending inwardly over said last named end sufaces and overlying and concealing the same. 1

4. A wire shelf comprising a front frame member and a rear frame member, a plurality of spaced apart parallel cross bars, opposite ends of said cross bars. being secured on top of said frame members and extending transversely thereof, and a trim member secured to the front side of said front frame member and having a portion extending rearwardly over the adjacent ends of said cross bars whereby to conceal the latter, said trim member extending the entire length of said frame member.

HOMER E. ROSEBROOK. OSCAR E. NORBERG. 

